Medium Density Gains Traction

Buyers looking for an established house could find it a challenge this Spring, with listings falling compared to the same time a year ago.

New dwellings are also attracting interest with first-home buyers taking advantage of government grants in some states to purchase newly-built homes.

The interest in new homes follows rising prices for established dwellings in the east coast capitals, prompting a regulatory clampdown on lending to investors and interest-only borrowers to cool the Sydney and Melbourne markets.

The number of building approvals rose 0.4% in August from July, says the ABS. Approvals for detached houses fell 0.6% and multi-residential approvals rose 4.8%.